'D' key to Oceanside success

SAN BERNARDINO -- It isn't just another baseball game for the
Oceanside American Little League All-Star squad.

Oceanside plays a team from Nevada at 7 tonight for the West
Regional championship with the winner advancing to the Little
League World Series in Williamsport, Pa.

The game will be shown on ESPN2.

"We are going to approach it as just another game, but the
stakes are higher," Oceanside manager Daryl Wasano said.

Oceanside defeated Taylorsville, Utah, 4-2, and Green Valley
Little League of Las Vegas topped San Xavier Little League of
Tucson, 5-3, on Sunday to advance to the finals.

Oceanside opened West Regional play on Aug. 4 against Green
Valley, scoring a 3-1 victory. In that game, Johnny Jimenez drove
in all three runs with a solo home run and a two-run double.

The Oceanside team, which began all-star practice on June 17,
has not lost a tournament game, winning 17 straight.

It began by winning the district title held in Oceanside. The
team advanced to the sectionals at Clairemont Mesa before winning
the Southern California title in Manhattan Beach.

"Before we started all-star play, I had the kids write down
their top 10 goals, and almost all of them said they wanted to go
to Williamsport," Wasano said.

The manager said the team has kept the tournaments in
perspective by not looking ahead.

"The kids have been responding the same way for each game, which
is good," Wasano said. "They have handled the pressure well."

One area in which Oceanside has been clearly superior is on
defense.

In five West Region games, Oceanside has made just seven errors
and three of them came during a 17-3 blowout of New Mexico.

By comparison, the opposition has committed a dozen miscues.

"Our errors have not cost us," Wasano said. "Under this
pressure, you expect the kids to be a little nervous."

The pressure apparently has not fazed his team.

Wasano pointed to a play Sunday against Utah that set the
tone.

"Their first batter hit a shot right at our first baseman (Chris
Scheuemann) that hit off his chest," Wasano said. "He stayed with
the ball and underhanded it to the pitcher covering. That was a
huge out."

Oceanside's pitcher Sunday was Thomas Eukovich, who allowed two
hits and struck out 11 after relieving Jimenez in the second
inning.

Under Little League rules, Eukovich will not be eligible to
pitch tonight.

"The rule for pitchers is they must sit out one game in addition
to one day," Wasano said.

Not to worry, said catcher Matthew Cerda, when asked if the team
has a No. 1 pitcher.

Should the Oceanside team win, it will board a bus at the San
Bernardino complex at 4 a.m. Wednesday and head to Los Angeles
International Airport. The team will arrive in Williamsport in the
early evening. The first round of pool play begins at 1 p.m. Friday
against the winner of the New England region.

Little League officials explained that there are more than 7,000
Little League teams in 104 countries that have played more than
15,000 tournament games in the last six weeks.

The best 16 make it to Williamsport.

The 1981 Escondido Little League squad was the last North County
squad to win the West Regional and advance to Williamsport.

Wasano noted that what his team has done so far is quite an
accomplishment.

"Win or lose, it has been awesome," he said. "I wouldn't trade
this experience for anything."

Et cetera

A fund has been established to raise travel expenses for
Oceanside American, should it advance to the Little League World
Series in Williamsport, Pa. Little League Baseball will pay for
only the players' expenses. Oceanside officials hope to be able to
send at least one parent of each player. Checks should be made
payable to Oceanside American LL Tournament Fund and sent to the
fund, c/o Union Bank, P.O. Box 3366, Oceanside, CA 92054. For more
information, call (760) 754-4719.

Steve Scholfield can be reached at (760) 740-3509 or
sports@nctimes.com.